Memorial Day

A few weeks ago I blogged about a wounded warrior I met in San Antonio and his upbeat attitude. I also mentioned hearing a story while I was there about a young Marine who had just died up in the burn unit at Brooke Army Medical Center...a Marine whose spirit touched everyone he encountered.
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I was reading the news tonight and saw that MSNBC is running a story about this Marine as part of their Memorial Day weekend coverage. I thought you might be interested in hearing "the rest of the story".
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I don't know what you'll think after you read this story, but I know I'm going to say a prayer that he's dancing in heaven in his dress blues, inspiring the angels.
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'Miracle' Marine loses final battle

The Five Defects of a Vessel

Covered Pot

Outrigger Hotel, Guam

2005

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One of my favorite contemporary spiritual authors is Lama Surya Das. In his book Awakening the Buddhist Heart, he discusses a Tibetan teaching called "The Five Defects of a Vessel" . This teaching illustrates conditions to avoid if we are to be suitable vessels for truth and wisdom.

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I have collected pottery for many years, so I found the symbol of the vessel particulary meaningful. I know that as an imperfect person, my vessel definitely has its defects, but this teaching provides a goal toward which I strive. I thought I'd share it here:

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The Five Defects of a Vessel:

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1. A pot which is turned over.
When we are facing in the wrong direction, we are essentially unavailable to even the most nourishing substances. This is a reminder that we get to choose the direction we face. We need to make wholesome choices and be available to hear wisdom teachings.

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2. A pot which is covered.
Have you ever tried to talk to someone wearing earphones? In the same way, how can anything be poured into a vessel that is shut down? This reminds us to be receptive and open.

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3. A pot that already contains something poisonous.
If we were to pour the purest water into a vessel that contained a toxic substance, although the toxin would be diluted, the water would still be corrupted. This reminds us to purify ourselves so that we are ready to receive.

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4. A pot which is already filled to the brim.
This symbol tells us not be so full of ourselves and our opinions and ideas that there is no room for anything else.

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5. A pot that leaks.
We all know the expression, "In one ear and out the other." It is not enough to hear and be filled with wisdom; we need to learn how to retain it.

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(PS: Did you notice the little gecko at the base of the pot in the photo?)

Wine...I need your ideas!

Grinding grapes

Bottling last year's vintage


Mike & George in the wine shed

My labeling partner, Loretta

Aaron learns how to cork bottles

w/a little help from some friends

Mike & Father Emo haul grapes

Me and the kids

Aaron & Annie stomping grapes

in the Kids Fun Crush

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Happy Tuesday everyone! These are photos from the Crush & Bottle Fest we attended at our friends' home in Southern California a few years ago.

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These are our friends, George & Angie, who we spend New Year's with each year. George starting making wine as a hobby 10+ years ago when they still lived in Indianapolis. When they moved to California for his job 8 years ago, he took his hobby up a major notch. Each year, the winemaking effort grew larger and larger, and he began relying on friends to help him get the job done. In 2006, he took the major step of actually creating a wine cooperative, and this year, Mike and I joined. This isn't a wine-of-the-month-club kind of deal. With the Co-op, we actually all contribute hands-on to making and bottling the wine.

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The Co-op is experimenting with growing some grapes, but the majority of the grapes for our wines come from established vineyards in Northern San Diego County as well as the Cucamonga Valley. The Co-op wines, under George's leadership, have won several gold, silver and bronze medals at amateur wine competitions in both California and Indiana.

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My favorite is the Old Vine Zin, but this year's bottling provided us with 5 vintages: Zin, Old Vine Grenache Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris.

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So here's where I need some of your brainstorming. Co-op members design our own individual wine labels. I have designed 5 concept labels, but I am not sure if they're exactly what I want. Mike and I plan to use these wines as business, hostess and holiday gifts and of course when we entertain here at home. We want the labels to reflect our family, our personalities. We want them classy but not too serious...this is all about friendship and fun.

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(I have deleted some personally identifying info in the concept labels below. Now, I know many of you readers know our family well, but I get about 80 or 90 different visitors here each day, and I don't know all of them. Mike and I have discussed this and have decided we are comfortable with me talking about our kids here as long as I don't give away a lot of identifying info that strangers might use. So if you see blanks on these things, that's me just playing it a little extra safe for the kids.)

We wanted to do one label w/ a mountain bike, since that is Mike's passion and he mountain bikes with several of his business associates. I took this photo of his bike up in Flagstaff a couple years ago...but might find a better bike shot for the front. He and I are bickering over the verbiage on the back label. He thinks we should compare the smooth wine to the rewarding smooth downhill ride on a mountain bike. I argue that mountain biking is not smooth, it's rugged like the hardy old vines.

I have three wines with labels with the waterlily motif...different colors, same concept. Hmmm. I've thought about finding an artistic image of a big gold dog for the standard label, too. But part of me wants to use my own photography on most of these. (I took the waterlily photos.)

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***Earing update! I finally got to the bead shop and bought more silver headpins, so I can finish the giveaway earrings this week. Thank you for your patience!***

Tonight's the night...

we'll make history, as sure as dogs can fly...


Our son, Aaron, who turned 11 this week, made his stage debut tonight in the (5th-8th grade) Drama Club's original musical called "Come Sail Away". The musical features the music of Styx and Phil Collins and ran 90 minutes. Aaron played the lead role of Dennis Collins, a rock star who feels like he's sold out for money and wants to find more meaning in his life, so he goes to a tropical paradise called Brazasia, where he discovers what really matters.

The cast has been in rehearsals since February. We spent this last week running like chickens with our heads off to rehearsal after rehearsal. Mike and I (and many other parents) were helping the kids build sets and costumes right up until the 11th hour. But it was all worth it. The kids did a fantastic job! And it really was a lot of fun working with the kids and getting to know some of the other parents.

Of course Mike caught it all on video and we'll be burning DVDs for fellow cast members and for extended family. We are so proud of all the hard, hard work all of the kids put into this. And SO glad our schedule has a chance of returning to normal! ☺

Pink Martini...straight up

Pink Martini of Portland, Oregon, have gained a cult following thanks to their party-friendly mix of Fellini-esque fanfare, Technicolor samba and other cosmopolitan frills.

-- Rolling Stone

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Pink Martini is intoxicating. One sip and you're guzzling the rest. Since its founding in 1994, this self-described "little orchestra" from Portland, Ore., has managed to create a style as bubbly as champagne, as smooth as brandy, as sophisticated as vintage wine....and as friendly as a Shirley Temple.

-- The Arizona Republic

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Last night I surprised Mike with tickets to see one of our favorite bands, Pink Martini, at their first public concert in Arizona. We've been fans for several years and own all their albums. We've often said we'd love to see them live and have even considered driving to San Diego to see them. Imagine my thrill when I learned they were not only coming to Scottsdale, but were actually performing on our anniversary.☺
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The concert was at a small, 2200-seat outdoor amphitheater under the stars. The weater was iffy in the morning, but cleared and made for a lovely night. The stage was set simply, just the 14-member band, consisting of China Forbes (vocals) and Thomas Lauderdale(band leader and grand piano), as well as trumpet, trombone, cello, violin, harp, guitar, bass, bongos and other miscellany. The band wore black suits and cocktail dresses. The musicianship was superb.

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The audience was a mix of all ages. As we pulled into the parking lot, we saw one senior citizen group tailgating ... with wine and cheese trays. Some of the college-age women in the audience were decked out in vintage Parisian cocktail attire. Mike and I sat on our lawn chairs under the stars and swaying palm trees, enjoyed some wine and superb live music, and toasted 19 years of marriage. We had a fantastic time.

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Here is a sampling of the Pink Martini vibe: Una Notte a Napoli

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If they come to a city near you, I recommend checking them out!

(If you like Pink Martini, you might also like Paris Combo...)

Happy Mother's Day!

Three generations

Oklahoma

July 2004

This photo isn't the best quality, but it's one of the few I have with my mom in recent years. For some reason, we're always taking photos of the kids with my mom or they're taking photos of me with the kids, but not us together. We need to remedy that when I visit my mom later this summer.
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I've already called her and sent her a gift, but I wanted to say "Happy Mother's Day" to my dear mother, who has been such a gift in my life. And of course I celebrate today because motherhood has been my own life's greatest experience. Nothing else begins to come close.
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Happy Mother's Day!

And just in case you were wondering who I look like, check out this photo of my mother, taken in 1972. She was 26 and this was taken at the airport as we were seeing my dad off to Vietnam. (That's my head in the foreground.)

The powerful lesson of attitude

The best part of my Air Force Reserve career is the amazing people I am privileged to serve with and encounter in the course of my duties. I am an individual Reservist embedded with my old active duty unit, which has about 15,000 troops located around the world, with headquarters in Texas.

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During the past several years, I've had a few occasions to meet wounded warriors and the experience is not only emotional, but inspirational. The courage these young Americans possess and the personal sacrifice they have made for their country is simply nothing short of awe-inspiring. Two weeks ago I attended an official event down near the Alamo with my boss and his wife. While there, I noticed a young GI sitting in a wheelchair and I asked him if he was going through treatment at Brook Army Medical Center, and he said he was. BAMC is where many of our wounded servicemembers go through treatment, particularly amputees and burn patients. I knew my boss, whose own son is serving in Afghanistan, would want to meet him and shake his hand, so I introduced the general to Specialist G.
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Specialist G isn't a publicity slick kind of soldier. A little rough around the edges, with a South Side Chicago accent, he seemed to me like the type who wouldn't be so great at a cocktail party, but would probably be just the kind of guy you'd want watching your back in Sadr City, if you know what I mean. Turns out Specialist G was on his third tour to Iraq when his Bradley hit an IED in Diyala Province more than a year ago, and is now confined to a wheelchair. To top it off, his parents are both dead and he doesn't have much family...only his girlfriend, who was by his side.
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The general thanked him for his service to our country and told him that he thought he had an amazing attitude. Specialist G, in his direct way, looked up at the general from his wheelchair and said, "Sir, I was just doing my job. I wanted to make the Army a career, but now I'm in the chair and that's over. But I don't dwell on that because I can't change the past. Sir, all I have is my attitude."
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The general's wife told me about a young man she met in the BAMC burn ward after his father stopped her in the hallway and said, "I would like you to meet my son." This young soldier, dubbed Miracle Merlin, sustained burns over more than 95% of his body and underwent many surgeries over a two year period at the hospital. Despite his severe disfigurement and obvious physical pain, he mustered the courage and positive attitude to serve as a strong shoulder for the other burn patients that came into the ward during his time there. He would try to lend them comfort and fellowship as they faced the unthinkable road ahead. He succumbed to his wounds last month, leaving the pain behind, as well as a legacy and depth of character that is hard to fathom.
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Maybe it takes a direct hit--physical or emotional--for most of us to realize it, but these young men seem to understand something that many older, supposedly wiser people fail to grasp. We can't change the past or guarantee the future. All we have is the present...and our attitude. I hope I can muster a fraction of their courage in my own life.